ABSTRACT
Videocassette recorders (VCRs) were first brought to the consumer market by Sony Corporation in 1975 (Advertising Age , 1975). Along with cable TV, VCRs represent a home entertainment medium that provides TV viewers with expanded viewing options and increased technical controls over their viewing process. The development of cable TV enabled TV viewers to become a more selective audience by offering more diversified programming. It was, however, the introduction of VCRs that emancipated the TV audience from being a passive viewer to an active user. Through the use of the VCR's technical features, TV viewers were able to actively select their viewing options from sources beyond their regular TV program schedule, in addition to timing their viewing decisions.
